Can customer relationships backfire? How relationship norms shape moral obligation in cancelation behavior

While prior research indicates that establishing interpersonal interaction with customers is mostly beneficial, this work reveals that the impact of social ties depends on relationship norms (communal vs. exchange). In three studies, including a real-world field dataset (N = 87,615 customers), the current investigation demonstrates the conditions under which interpersonal relationships can increase or decrease customers’ cancelation behavior. The findings indicate that communal (vs. exchange) relationships can increase customers’ future cancelation behaviors. The findings also demonstrate that perceived moral obligation underlies interpersonal effects on cancelation behavior. That is, when providers develop communal (vs. exchange) ties, consumers feel that their interaction with the providers is in a closed social context, which tends to reduce their obligations towards attending their booking, thus increasing cancelation behavior. Theoretical and practical implications for business researchers and practitioners are discussed.